CENTRAL MINNESOTA SCHOOL OF TAXIDERMY

310 West main St Rice MN 56367
Telephone 320-393-2825 call or text.
Email trailsendrice@gmail.com
(Note: If no response after emailing – Check your spam account)

Sign up for a class with openings with a $500 down payment – HERE

Thank you for taking the time to look at our new updated website!! We are always trying to improve our school and have added a few new classes and bundled them to give you a COMPLETE FULL COURSE experience! You can always take Species Specific (SS) classes or now you can take every class we offer in one package! Our complete course package includes the following, Deer, Fish, Small Game, Birds, Bear, Turkey, Habitats, and Tanning! We know of no other taxidermy course that offers ALL of these in their curriculum! This is one of the most complete taxidermy courses you will find!
Or if you prefer to get started on the BASIC COURSE you will learn what hunters bring into most studios in the Midwest. These specimens include the following, Deer, Fish, Birds and Small Game. This is the most popular course and you can always come back and take the others as a SS class. By taking either the Complete or Basic course, you will save about $2000 on tuition so we highly suggest using one of those options. You will find the dates and pricing in the dropdown menu located at the top of site! We have been teaching for the past 20 years and some of our students have the busiest studios in the central MN area after they completed training in our taxidermy.
We also will talk you through licensing within YOUR state to make sure you are compliant with the laws!
Cover learning tools and further education once you have completed the course.

2027 Session openings
Winter Session – Full
1 Opening for Spring Basic or Complete Course
6 Openings for Summer Basic or Complete Course

Tuition for the Complete Course will be $16,300

THIS IS THE MOST COMPLETE, COMPREHNSIVE TAXIDERMY COURSES IN THE
COUNTRY! NO OTHER SCHOOL OFFERS MORE SUBJECTS THAN WE DO!!
Tuition for the Basic Course will be $8,650
THIS IS YOUR BASIC MEAT AND POTATES COURSE! OFFERING THE MOST
COMONNLY DROPPED OFF ITEMS AT A STUDIO IN THE MIDWEST!!
Tuition for Species Specific Classes are listed on the Dates Page

IF YOU’RE ONLY LOOKING FOR ONE SPECIFIC SPECIES THIS IS PERFECT FOR YOU!!
Sign up for class with openings with as little as a $500 down payment – HERE
Note: In Notes to Seller Please enter your desired course – Year & Complete or

Basic Winter, Spring, Summer or SS.

Rice Area Sportsmen’s Club Environmental Education Scholarship Form

Click Here to open the form.

Applicants need to follow the form as closely as possible.
Competed forms need to be submitted by March 31st.
Watch the Minnesota Bound video below which aired in 2025!

Taxidermy Kits

With thousands of items to choose from in the industry it can be a bit overwhelming when setting up your studio. We have simplified it for you when ordering supplies you will need to get your location up and running. We feel these “kits” have 95 % of the tools you will need to get up and running! At the beginning of each class we will ask the students if they would like one of these kits and will order everything needed so when they leave they can immediately start working as soon as they graduate!! We not only do this for the full course but the Species Specific courses as well! Following is the breakdown costs for the kits to fit your needs! A lot of the tools are interchangeable from one species to the next so let’s say you take birds and fish class…. we will make adjustments on the price of the two kits accordingly. If you are over time going to take every class separately you would probably be better ordering the full kit right away. 

Students’ personal specimens (If you don’t have needed specimens, we supply
them at no extra cost)

We do allow our students to bring their own specimens. In fact we encourage it as
it makes it more personal for them when mounting them. Example a child’s first fish
or deer. We do have some requirements the specimens must meet though in order
to bring them. Fish…we try to keep fish of the same species in class and walleyes
are the best to learn on. If you’d like to bring your own fish we would like walleyes,
preferably between the lengths of 20-23 inches nose to tail. We NEED fish to be
brought in at least a month prior to the beginning of class as it takes time to get the
bodies and since they are one of the first things you will be mounting, we need
them sooner than later. Birds…. one pheasant and one duck are required. Try to
make sure they are not shot up or dog chewed and all the wing bones and leg bones
are in good shape. Deer heads… if you or someone you know shoots a deer and
would like to mount it in class, by all means call us and we can take the cape off
and put it in the freezer for you with your name on it and when class begins you
have one or 2 to work on of your own. If you are traveling a distance, have your
local taxidermist remove the cape for you and bring it and the rack to class. For
small game please do not bring in any fox or coyotes! No canines. Only bring in
coon, badger, otter and mink please. Bring in all specimens the first day of class
(other than the fish which must be brought in a month earlier) and we will go over
them to make sure they are all usable.

Minimum age requirement
We like our students to be at least 17 years of age. At this age it will allow them to
drive to school without having to be chauffeured. They are also more mature and
able to better handle the power tools that are in class. They are also more
responsible with their phones should we need to call them with any pertinent
information.

Casting and Molding Techniques
We will be incorporating Casting and Molding into our curriculum. Each student will
learn how to cast bird heads, deer noses and ear buts. With this information they
can save large amounts of money by casting your own specimens’ anatomy. We will
also be going over antler replication as well through various demonstrations. With
bird heads going for $10-$15 a piece this will save you a lot of cash if you will be
doing a bunch of birds!
Structured Class Schedule
Please see above Class Dates Tab for our updated schedules and how many
positions are still available. We have a Winter, Spring, and Summer classes
available. Most classes will be held on a 2-4 day week mostly around the weekend
schedule. Call or text me if you have any questions. 320-393-2825

Species Specific Classes
We do offer Species Specific (SS) classes, for example if you want to only do deer
heads, we can cater to your needs BUT we must cater to our full-time students first
so SS classes will only be offered if there is room available. We have 8 workstations
and if one or more are open we can then take on the SS individuals. We will know if
we have any spots available 1 week out from beginning of class, what works best is
to call us and get on a call back list and 1 week out from the beginning of class if
there are openings, we will call you to see if you are still interested.

TANNING CLASSES
We have set the dates for the Dec 2026 tanning classes…You will be required to
bring in 2 salted but not dried deer capes. Salt for a day, shake off salt place in a
plastic bag and then put into a freezer. We cover deer cape tanning for mounts and
small game dry tanning techniques.

FIRST CLASS
Friday 4th
Saturday 5th
Sunday 6th

SECOND CLASS
Monday 7th
Tuesday 8th
Wednesday 9th
Call us to reserve a spot these fill up fast!! 320-393-2825

Watch the Minnesota Bound video below which aired in 2025!